Together Forever?
by GinnyMartin
Summary: Detective Kate Beckett and Richard Castle decide to get intimate. Two days later Beckett gets shot. Who did it? Why did they do it? Will Beckett survive? Rated T for lemon/citrus fun moments.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I do **_**NOT **_**own Castle (wish I did)!**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 1!!**_

His body fit hers perfectly. Hers fit his like a glove.

Beckett and Castle's last case had very emotional for Kate. The crime had been an almost exact match to her mothers. The only difference was that they had caught the killer. After the final interrogation, Beckett had gone to Lady's Locker Room and cried for an hour. After about ten minutes Castle found her. Beckett had tried half heartedly to get him to leave but nothing would work. Truth be told, she didn't want him to leave. His presence was very soothing.

He kissed her on the mouth then worked his way down to her belly button. She moaned with longing, not wanting him to stop.

"Beckett--" Richard Castle said into her stomach.

"Castle, we're having sex. I'm pretty sure we can call each other by our _first _names," Detective Kate Beckett interrupted him.

"Ok," Castle lifted his head off of her stomach and looked into her eyes. "Kate, I love you."

Beckett could feel her jaw drop but she recovered quickly.

"Rick, I love you so much more than you could know," Kate responded with passion. After that they were a little too busy to talk.

***

_That was the greatest night of my life, _Beckett thought as she woke up the next morning. _I have never had sex as amazing as that. Not even with Will. _Detective Beckett was in complete bliss. She could not remember a happier time in her life. The next moment Castle woke up.

"Good morning, Kitten," Kate greeted him with warmly.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that, muse?" Castle replied jokingly.

"About as many times as I've told you not to call me your muse."

Without a doubt, Castle was as happy as Beckett. The sex he had with Kate had been even better then sex with the deep fried Twinkie. Without a doubt, last night was the best night of Castle's life.

"I should probably go back home so I can get ready for work," Beckett said breaking the blissful silence. "Good thing Alexis and Martha are out of town on that shopping spree or we would have some explaining to do."

"Good call on the changing thing. You want me to come with you, and 'help'?" Castle asked jokingly.

"If you did that I would never get anything done," Kate responded as she stood up to leave. "I'll see you in a few at work."

***

A second after Detective Kate Beckett sat down at her desk, Ryan and Esposito pounced.

"Slutty," said Ryan.

"Sexy," put in Esposito.

"Flexible."

"Skilled."

"Ok, I'll bite. What are you too doing?"

"We're describing the couple on the cover of '_What's What'_. You know the _world famous _tabloid," Ryan said answering her question.

"I don't really care for tabloids. Now get off of my desk," Kate snapped back.

"Oh, but you'll want to look at this," Esposito said, slapping down his copy of _What's What!_

Kate gasped in shock. On the cover of the tabloid was a picture of her and Rick. Having sex! Underneath it was the headline "Richard Castle and His New Muse!"

Beckett jumped up form her desk, with the tabloid in hand, and ran to the elevator that Rick had just stepped through. She grabbed his shirt and pushed him back through.

"What are you doing?" Castle asked after Kate had pressed the button for the lobby of the precinct.

"Showing you this," She said after trusting _What's What! _under Castle's nose.Rick's eyes scanned the cover and as they did they slowly got bigger.

"What the hell!" he screamed about two seconds later. "Reporters just don't respect your private life anymore," he said incredulously.

"I know. What are we going to do?" Kate asked.

"Well, the way I see it we have two options. Option one, I could stop shadowing and seeing you while you try to rebuild your professional image. Or option two, we could start dating and I would die a happier man," he said matter-of-factly.

"I like option two," Kate said.

They sealed the deal with a kiss.

***

The next day Beckett woke up starring at the ceiling of her room. But she wasn't really seeing it. She was too preoccupied with her thoughts. They were all about her favorite author, Richard Castle.

They had went to dinner at a restaurant so expensive a slice of bread cost about a month's worth of Beckett's salary. She was thinking about "dessert" when she opened the door of her apartment to leave for work. Only when she opened the door she wasn't seeing the boring colors of her apartment hallway.

She was seeing the barrel of a gun.

Suddenly there was a loud bang and Detective Beckett fell to the ground.

_**A/N: Hope you liked it! Please read and review. I love both positive and negative reviews! **_

_**Leave a comment, question, concern or suggestion and odds are you'll get a reply! The next chapter should come soon. **_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 2!!**_

Richard Castle was in the bull pen but he wasn't sitting in his usual seat. He was pashing around like mad.

"Dude, stop worrying. She'll be here any minute," Ryan advised the worried author.

"It's been half an hour! You've know Kate for longer then I have, has she ever been late?!" Castle's voice was strained he was so nervous that something had happened. He was starting to hate having such an active imagination. So many different scenarios were running through his head. Car crash. Fire. Illness. Stuck in an elevator! As more and more started to pop into his head, he began to shake. He didn't know how he knew, but he just knew something was wrong.

Suddenly Captain Montgomery came rushing into the room.

"Ryan and Esposito, meeting room now!" As soon as they had both left the room, Montgomery turned to Castle.

"Kate was shot early this morning in her apartment." As the news form Montgomery began to sink in, Castle dropped into his chair and put his head in his hands.

"No," he said so quietly Montgomery could barely hear him.

"Castle, she's not dead. She's in surgery at the hospital on 42nd Street. Go ahead and we'll meet you there later," The captain said comfortingly, placing a hand on his shoulder.

As soon as Castle was calm enough to stand he headed toward the elevator and Captain Montgomery headed toward the meeting room. But before he could get there he ran into Ryan and Esposito trying to listen in.

"Why do need us to stay? We want to go make sure she's ok, too!" Ryan said the second he saw the Captain. Tears were starting to form in both of their eyes but neither felt ashamed.

"Detective Beckett was shot, that means attempted homicide, that means we have case to work on," Montgomery explained to them. He than lead them back into the bull pen.

"Do we have any evidence?" Esposito asked the second he stepped into the room.

"The gun has not been found but the hospital will send over the bullet once they retrieve it. However we do have this," Montgomery held up the cover page of _What's What!,_ it was hard to tell but is probably the cover with the picture of Kate and Castle on it. It was covered in blood, Beckett's blood.

"I'll go dust it for any foreign prints. Let's hope it wasn't just something Beckett had in her hand," Ryan said, grabbing the evidence bag.

"Esposito, go to her apartment and check the elevator security cameras and see if her doorknob has any prints that match the tabloid," Montgomery ordered.

"I'm already gone!" Esposito said, as way of parting.

* * *

Back at the hospital things were going well. Beckett had been in surgery for two hours. Even though Castle knew these things took time, he was still incredibly anxious for her to out of surgery. He had spoken to her doctor earlier. She had one gun shot wound in her lower rib cage. The bullet had missed her major organs but was lodged in the back of her rib cage and the surgeons were having a little trouble getting it out. Also the bullet had torn a few blood vessels so the doctors were currently sewing those up.

"How long should the surgery take?" Castle had asked.

"About four to eight hours. It'll be about two weeks until she's 100 percent again," the doctor informed him.

"Should she live?" Castle asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"The only lasting damage will be the scar," the doctor assured him.

Castle had breathed out a sigh of relief and dropped into the nearest chair, too happy to stand.

Now here he was with two hours gone form the surgery. He was getting more and more worried about her. Suddenly there was a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey Daddy!" Alexis Castle said, greeting her father warmly.

"Hey Alexis. I'm guessing you got my message," Castle greeted back, puling his daughter into a tight hug.

"Yeah, how's Kate doing?" Alexis had grown to really like Detective Beckett, and after seeing the headline of _What's What, _she figured she didn't have much of a choice.

"Still in surgery, but she's going to be just fine."

"That's amazing news!" Alexis said happily.

* * *

Back at the precinct, things weren't going as well.

"I've got unis looking for the gun, but so far nothing has turned up. I lifted prints off of _What's What, _but no match in CODIS. However, when I washed the blood off I found a big X through Kate's head," Ryan reported. "I defiantly think the cover is the reason she was shot. Someone was jealous."

"That's what I'm thinking too," Montgomery replied. "Have you heard anything from Esposito yet?"

"Yeah, he didn't get any foreign prints off the door. He thinks Kate was shot when she opened the door to leave for work. He's going over the security cameras now and will report back if he finds anything. Any news from Castle?" Ryan asked when he was done filling the Captain in.

"She's still in surgery but she should be fine," Montgomery informed him.

"Thank god for that. Keep me posted."

"Can do," Montgomery said as they went off to try to find Beckett's could have been killer.

_**A/N: Thank you, thank you for all of the story alerts and reviews. Hope the update was fast enough for you. As usual review, I really really want to hear what you have to say! **_

_**~GM**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 3!!!**_

Richard Castle and Alexis had been in the waiting room for four hours. Alexis did not want to leave her father's side. She knew he was upset because he had barely said two words in the last few hours. She had not seen him this upset since Gina had cheated on.

"Dad, everything's going to be alright. You know that, don't you?" Alexis said to her father, trying again to cheer him up. Nothing was working.

"I know pumpkin, I'm just so worried about her," he responded.

Alexis could see tears building up in his eyes. She grabbed his hand and cuddled up closer to her father. Her presence was very soothing to Castle. He didn't know how he could have gotten through this long wait without her.

* * *

"Captain!" Ryan yelled running into his boss's office. "Unis found a gun in one of the dumpsters outside of Kate's apartment building. There is a ballistics match between the gun and the bullet pulled form Kate's chest," Ryan informed Montgomery excitedly. "And the gun is registered."

"To who?" Montgomery asked, excited about the first real lead in this case.

"Guess," Ryan told him.

"I'm not guessing, just tell me before I fire you," Montgomery replied jokingly.

"Ok, ok. The gun is registered to Will Sorenson."

* * *

"So… why am I here exactly?" a very confused Will Sorenson asked Detective Kevin Ryan, who was sitting across from him in the interrogation room.

"Have you seen the newest edition of _What's What, _Mr. Sorenson?" asked Ryan, ignoring Will's question.

"The one with Castle and Kate? Yeah, who hasn't? More importantly, why do you care?" Will responded.

"How did you feel when you saw it? Angry, upset?" Ryan was trying to get him to cave, but he knew it wouldn't work. Ryan had a feeling that Will didn't do it, but he wanted to cover all of his bases anyways.

"I was kinda pissed at Kate for doing something so stupid but that's about it," Will answered, getting more confused by the minute.

"Were you 'pissed' enough to kill?" Ryan said, going in for the confession.

"Kill? What do you mean 'kill'? Has something happened to Kate?!"

"As a matter of fact, yes. She was shot in the chest. With your gun, Will! Tell me how that's possible!" Ryan was starting to get angry. He didn't like the compassion he saw in Will's eyes. Will Sorenson still had feelings for Kate.

"She was…what! With my gun?!" Will took a deep breath, gathering his thoughts. If he did this wrong he could end up in jail for a long time. "It's very possible that my gun was used to shot Kate. The gun you're referring to was stolen from my house yesterday night. I filled a report with the police; you can look at the report and see for self."

"Oh, believe me I will, Will. But first I your finger prints and your alibi for this morning," Ryan ordered.

"Fine, I was at home, eating breakfast," Will told the Detective.

"Can anyone confirm that?" Ryan asked, already knowing the answer.

"No. Have you talked to Kate at all? Is she alright?" Will asked. He was off the hook for trying to kill Kate, now he could worry about her.

"She's in surgery." Ryan told Will while he took the FBI officer's finger prints. "Did you happen to see who stole your gun?"

"No, but now I'm wishing I had."

* * *

"Well, Will was telling the truth about his gun being stolen. Plus, his finger prints don't match the prints lifted form the tabloid," Ryan sadly reported to his boss half an hour later.

"Great, we're at square one again. Any news from Esposito?" Montgomery asked, hoping that Esposito had _something_ they could go on.

"Not yet, but I'll check in with him. Any news on how Beckett's doing?" Ryan was very worried about his friend.

"Not yet, but I'll tell you as soon as I know. Go help Esposito with the security tapes."

Ryan hurried to do what his boss instructed.

* * *

Richard Castle and his daughter had been in the surgery waiting room for five hours. Castle was hoping with all his strength that good news would come soon.

It did.

"Mr. Castle," said the doctor that had spoken to Rick earlier. He was walking up to where Castle and Alexis were sitting.

"How is she, Doctor?" Castle asked praying that the current love of his life was _finally _out of surgery.

"She is out of surgery and has been moved to a recovery room. She woke up just a few minutes ago. You can go and see her if you like. Just keep it short and remember that she just had major surgery."

After getting her room number, Castle stood up to go see the women he loved.

_**A/N: Hope you like the story so far!! Just a heads up, that the next chapter might be kinda short. As usual, please review!!!! And thanks so so much to all of the people that have been reviewing. It means so much to me!! Just a heads up, (wow I say that a lot) I'm thinking this story will be about six chapters long. **_

_**~GM**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 4!!**_

Detective Kate Beckett had never been in more pain then she was that night. She felt like, well she felt like she had just been shot in the chest. Every breath she took felt like she was being stabbed in multiple places. She gasped as she became conscious enough to full realize how much pain she was in. The doctor, who had been standing at the foot of her bed reading her chart, came rushing over.

"It is good to see that you've finally come round Detective Beckett. I will be your doctor for the time you are staying here. My name is Jameson Rook," Dr. Rook said. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty terrible, Dr. Rook" the detective said weakly.

"Does any place hurt more than the others?"

Kate thought for a second, really trying to get a measure on the amount of pain she was in. "My left ribs mostly. Is that were that where I was shot?" Kate asked curiously.

"Yes, how much do you remember?" Rook was shocked that Kate even knew she had been shot.

"I remember opening the door of my apartment and starring down the barrel of a gun. The next thing I remember is waking up here. One of the perks of being a detective is having a really good memory," Kate informed him.

"That's not surprising. As to the pain in your ribs, eight are broken. Six in the front, from the force of the bullet entering, and two in the back form the impact of the bullet. I would be happy to give you some pain medicine. I didn't before because none of your friends here knew if you were allergic to any," Dr. Rook explained.

"Friends? Who all is here?" Kate inquired, though she was confident that she knew at least one.

"Richard Castle and his daughter. Detective Montgomery said he would be here in just a minute. He has some questions for you about the shooting. Who would you like to see first?" Dr. Rook asked.

"Richard Castle, please. He's probably really worried."

_This ought to be good, _Kate thought as the doctor left to get the man she loved.

* * *

_Holy Shit! _Esposito thought when he saw the figure in the elevator security camera. _I think I'm looking at Beckett's shooter!_

* * *

Richard Castle had to hold himself back form skipping down to Kate's room. He was so glad that she was finally awake.

When he walked in to her room, a huge smile spread across his face. She looked so cute when she was asleep. He was about to turn around and go back out but the sound of her voice stopped him.

"It's so good to see you, Kitten," Kate said jokingly.

"Like wise, my muse!" Castle responded.

"How about a deal? I'll stop calling you kitten if you stop calling me 'my muse'," Kate proposed.

"Haven't we already tried this once? Oh well, sure why not?" Castle agreed. "How are you feeling?" Castle asked, all joking aside. He pulled a chair up beside the injured Detective.

"Like I've just been shot. Any news on the case?" Kate asked, trying and failing to lighten the mood.

"No, but I saw Captain Montgomery as I was walking in here. Ryan and Esposito need me. I have 14 missed calls and 28 urgent texts," Castle commented, only just now noticing his cell phone. "Besides, I should probably get Alexis home. She says 'I hope you're feeling better,' by the way. Oh, and she also says 'I approve.'"

"Tell her that I'm glad! Now go see what Ryan and Esposito want."

Castle left, but not before giving Kate Beckett and long and meaningful kiss.

* * *

"Hey, Kate," Captain Montgomery said as he walked into his top Detective's hospital room.

"Hey, Captain. Any news on the case?" As usual, Detective Beckett was all business.

"Well, we found the gun but the owner was cleared," Montgomery informed her.

"Who was it?" Kate asked curiously

"Will Sorenson."

_Wow, wasn't expecting that one! _Kate thought to herself. "Any other suspects," Kate said out loud, doing a good job at hiding her surprise.

"No, but Ryan and Esposito are looking over the elevator security cameras. With any luck they might find something we can use," Captain Montgomery said, but with little hope.

* * *

Back at the precinct Ryan and Esposito were waiting impatiently for Castle. He had called a little while ago and said he was on his way. Esposito had found something amazing and on the elevator cameras, but he needed Castle's help to be sure.

"Ok, guys, what was so import ant that I had to leave Kate?" Castle asked the two detectives.

"This," Esposito pointed to his computer.

Castle walked over to it and watched the video playing. It was the elevator security video from Beckett's apartment. It showed a person getting off the elevator at floor 11, three floors above Beckett's apartment.

"Why am I watching this?" Castle asked.

"Wait for it," Ryan told him.

Two minutes after the time Beckett got shot the same person got back on the elevator. Three floors _below_ Beckett's apartment. The person had something in their hands.

"Is that what I think it is?" Castle asked Ryan and Esposito incredulously.

"Yup," Ryan said.

"A gun," Esposito said.

"_The_ gun," they said together. The person on the security camera was Detective Kate Beckett's shooter.

"Do you recognize the person in this video?" Ryan asked.

Castle took a closer look. He felt like someone had punched him the gut with an iron fist. He knew the person on the screen.

"Oh my god!" Castle said incredulously. "Is that…?"

_**A/N: Ha ha, you probably hate me now. I'll try to update soon. Like later tonight or tomorrow. The next time I post I'm gonna put the last two chapters up so it'll probably be longer than usual! Please, stay with me a second while I thank some very important people. A big thanks to **_**WhiteRoseSwan, nmcowgirl08, Elishak, ****coalcanyon2, DarkStiletto, SimpleName, and Lickerish for reviewing!!! A BIG BIG thanks to Steel-dust-01 for your many words encouragement!!! A HUGE HUGE thanks to all of the 772 people that have read my story, especially the international people!! Please, please review!!!!! Two more chapters!!**

**~GM**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 5!!!**_

Castle took a closer look. He felt like someone had punched him in the gut with an iron fist. He knew the person on the screen.

"Oh my god!" Castle said incredulously. "Is that…?! Is that Meredith?!"

"We're pretty sure it is but we need your help. We've contacted all of the airports, trains, and bus stations, so we know that she's still in New York. We need your help finding her though. Do you have any idea Meredith might be staying?" Ryan asked once he was sure the news had sunk in.

"Yes, the Grand Hotel on 13th Street, she always stays there when she's in the city," Castle said numbly from his seat beside the computer screen. He was staring at his shoes and looked like he was about to start crying.

"Let's go, Ryan," Esposito ordered. "Castle," Esposito said, kneeling down beside the upset author. "You have to stay here. Kate will make me bleed in you get hurt."

"I'm going," Richard Castle said, looking up. The steely resolve in his eyes convinced Esposito that nothing would stop him.

"Fine, but you will stay behind. Don't say anything and don't let Meredith see you."

* * *

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"NYPD, WE HAVE A WARENT!"

Meredith was sitting in her hotel room; she jumped and spilled her tea down the front of her blouse when she heard the shouts

"Don't move," Esposito said with threatening quietness as he entered the hotle room. Judging by the look on her face, moving wasn't really a possibility. She seemed frozen in place. Ryan and Esposito walked toward Meredith and cuffed her. Her eyes were huge and she looked really scared. Until she saw Richard Castle standing in the doorway, with hell in his eyes.

"Don't let them do this to me, Kitten," Meredith begged. "I had a good reason, I swear!"

"Save it for someone who cares!" Castle spat at her as Ryan began to read her her rights.

* * *

"Why did you do it Meredith?" Ryan asked Meredith angrily. She had tried to kill one of his best friends.

"What does it matter? I'm going to prison anyways! How did you even figure out it was me?" Meredith inquired.

"Easy, the elevator surveillance cameras had a video of you with the gun in your hand," Ryan said as he slapped a still frame of the video down on the table.

"Oh, I didn't know the elevators actually had cameras. At least not in the dump of an apartment she was living in," Meredith said with disgust.

"Why did you shot her?" Ryan asked, getting angrier and angrier by the minute.

"Because I saw the tabloid. No one has sex with my man and gets away with it. The last time I was in town, he and I had sex together. He all but told me he wanted to get remarried. Then I saw the cover of the _What's what_, I realized immediately what was going on. She was using him to make her more famous. I bet if you followed the paper trail then you would find out that she hired that photographer. I shot Beckett so my Ricky wouldn't have to deal with that." Meredith explained.

Ryan stood up and left the interrogation room to get an officer to take her through booking. If he was in there much longer, Meredith would get shot.

From behind the two way mirror, Richard Castle had seen it all. He felt like he was going to throw up.

* * *

"I'm so sorry, Kate," Castle told his girlfriend after he had finished telling her about Meredith.

"Don't be, Rick. There was nothing you could have done," Beckett assured him. Kate was still in the hospital but, thanks to Dr. Rook's excellent care, she was going to be discharged in about a week.

"I should never have married her in the first place. Can you ever forgive me for what my horrible ex-wife did to you?" Castle asked earnestly.

"There's nothing to forgive," Kate said and then leaned over to give the love of her life a deep and meaningful kiss.

_**A/N: Wow that is the shortest chapter I have ever written! So we know who shot Kate. We know Kate is going to be just fine. So what on earth could the next chapter be about?**_

_**~GM**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**_

_**Together Forever?**_

_**Chapter 6!!!**_

**Two Weeks Later:**

_Oh shit! _Beckett thought. _What will Rick say?_

* * *

_Nikki had her air-conditioning off and was walking her apartment naked and wet, not bothering to towel off in the humidity. The die-hard soap bubbles felt good on her skin, and besides, once she dries off, she'd be damp in no time in the soggy air, so why not be damp and smell like lavender?_

Castle was reading his favorite part of _Heat Wave_ for what felt like the thousandth time. He just couldn't believe what a good job he had done at that part. Suddenly, his phone went off.

"Hey, Kate!" Castle said into the phone, recognizing the number immediately.

"Hey, Rick. Would you mind coming over to my apartment?" Kate asked. "I've missed you."

"Sure Kate, I'll be right over."

* * *

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Twenty minutes later, Castle was knocked knocking on Kate's door.

"Hey, Rick!" Kate greeted him happily. "Come in." She led him over to her coach and she sat next to him, grabbing his hands. They sat in comfortably silence for a few minutes until Castle spoke up.

"What's wrong Kate? You're trembling," Richard Castle noted with concern.

A huge smile spread across Detective Kate Beckett's face. Then she said, "I'm pregnant."

* * *

_**Epilogue:**_

One month later Richard Castle proposed to Detective Kate Beckett at the launch party for the second Nikki Heat book. They got married two months later in Central Park. It was a small wedding but it had huge headlines. Ryan was the best man and Esposito was a groomsman. Alexis was the maid of honor and Lanie was a bridesmaid. Lanie and Esposito caught the bouquet and garter; they have been dating ever since. Ryan and his girlfriend got married one month after Castle and Beckett. He now sings her to sleep every night. Maratha Castle landed a big role on Broadway; she fell in love with the lead actor. They started dating and where going to get married but ... he stole all of her money and Martha moved back in with Richard, Kate, Alexis, and the baby.

Nicole Joanna Castle was born August 20, 2010. Within a year of being born, Nicole became the precinct's top investigator. Nothing cracks hardened criminals better then a baby who's only a few months old! She, however, went on to follow in her father's footsteps and become a world famous author. Alexis followed in Kate's footsteps and became a top homicide detective for New York City.

The End

_A/N: This story was going to have a sequel, it actually did for awhile, but then I couldn't figure out how to write it so I just slapped an epilogue on to this story. Hope you liked it! I should have a new story soon (Twilight themed!) so keep an eye out for it! _

_~GM_


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